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Once again, the trade deadline was more llama than we needed. More flash, fluff and puff than substance.
Yes, there were some interesting deals done in the last few weeks, but no last-day blockbusters...

In Opinion

Viewpoints

Trails watchmen are there to push mountain-bike agenda
Thank you for your article, Watchmen on Duty. What Mark Wood, who is a paid North Shore Mountain Bike Association employee, fails to mention is that...

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OTTAWA - A digital petition once famously forced the White House to provide official comment on an oddball suggestion for stimulating the U.S. economy: building a heavily armed intergalactic space station...

The Detroit NewsWith Henrik Zetterberg (back surgery) unavailable for the remainder of the regular season and the status of Pavel Datsyuk (inflamed knee) and Stephen Weiss (sports hernia) unclear, the Red Wings have three key offensive pieces out of the lineup.

by Steve Ewen3/5/2014 4:34:39 PM

Still, surprised they included a 2015 1st rounder.... You would have thought that TB was negotiating from a position of weakness, but not prying that return out of NYR. The relationship must really have soured between Calahan and NYR.

by Light Speed3/5/2014 4:34:37 PM

Yes, food poisoning. I had a vivid description of him stumbling across the arena parking lot to his hotel post-work.

by Jonathan McDonald3/5/2014 4:33:27 PM

Funny thing about that Miami Herald story is that there isn't a single comment on it. We're not exactly talking about a rabid market. My favourite tweet yesterday was from the CTV reporter who called his sister in Miami to tell her about the trade. "She was surprised ... to learn Miami has a hockey team."

by Jonathan McDonald3/5/2014 4:33:00 PM

@JonathanMcDonald: food poisoning, eh?

by Patrick Johnston3/5/2014 4:32:05 PM

Hard to argue with StLouis production this year

by Light Speed3/5/2014 4:31:38 PM

@LightSpeed: Incredible return for a 38 year old. Granted, he's still a top flight scorer, but for how much longer?

Just got off the phone with Ben, in Phoenix. Dude is suffering from some serious food-poisoning or something. Rough evening, rough night, but he's back at it this morning and ready to rock. Says Markstrom may be practising with team today in Phoenix, wonders why he isn't just going straight to Dallas.

by Jonathan McDonald3/5/2014 4:30:49 PM

As a fun note - Gord Clark, one of our senior editors here, couldn't help but point the rather minor placement of the Luongo story on the Miami Herald's website...

NHL VideoCenterMartin St. Louis Takes in Yankees Game - Tampa forward Martin St. Louis takes in a Yankee game during the off-season. - With NHL Tampa Bay Lightning Online you get all hockey, all access, all the time, live and direct around the league, every goal of every game, NHL Live on XM, classic moments, podcasts, and special programming all on demand

Those were days. Below is Ben Kuzma's story on Ryan Kesler at the draft. Burke sticks to the list: Had Kesler ranked higher so he took him over TambelliniThe Province Sun Jun 22 2003 Page: A86 Section: Sports Byline: Ben Kuzma Dateline: NASHVILLE, Tenn. Source: The Province

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Jeff Tambellini was the better story but the Canucks are hoping Ryan Kesler will develop into the better player. Not that general manager Brian Burke didn't make a pitch to land both players Saturday at the NHL entry draft.

The Canucks selected Kesler, a strong two-way Ohio State centre who has been compared to Trevor Linden, with the 23rd overall selection. They passed on Tambellini, the son of Canucks vice-president of player personnel Steve Tambellini, and the speedy Michigan winger went four selections later to Los Angeles.

"We were talking to St. Louis about the 30th pick but L.A. announced him as we were working the deal out," Burke said of trying to move up from 60th overall where they selected Halifax winger Marc-Andre Bernier. "But we don't go off our list. We're not doing our fans a service if we accommodate someone whose father works in the organization.

"We like the kid a lot but we had Ryan Kesler ranked ahead of him. To be a forward in our league, you need proper levels of hostility, belligerence and speed and he's got those things. And, he's quite a bit bigger.

"Two teams, right after I took him, told me they had him rated in the top 10. That's a good endorsement."

Kesler was no different than anybody else when Burke stepped to the microphone. He thought it was a lock Tambellini would wind up playing in Vancouver.

"I thought they'd take Tambellini," admitted Kesler, who had 31 points (11-20) in 40 games last season and played more than half of them on a line with R.J. Umberger, the Canucks first-round pick two years ago. "But this is a great feeling. All the pressure is lifted off you when you hear your name called.

"I must have had 65 family members here. It took me a half hour to shake all their hands."

Not only did Kesler impress the Canucks with a strong world junior tournament -- the 6-foot-1, 195-pound native of Livonia, Mich., had four points in seven games -- he did likewise when the Canucks went to Columbus to check on Umberger. What they saw was Kesler making plays to get Umberger an All-American nod with a 25-goal season.

"Kesler brought his 'A' game against Canada in Halifax," recalled Canucks chief scout Ron Delorme. "We were very impressed. He had all kinds of special assignments against Canada -- win a draw or play along the boards -- and plays at both ends of the rink."

Kesler was always playing hockey growing up in suburban Detroit. But he hated the Red Wings, only because older brother Todd was a fan.

The knock on Kesler is that he's not offensively gifted and needs to get stronger. He doesn't think that will be a problem.

"That's fair," he said of the assessment. But, "I think I'm a power centre, a two-way centre. I think I'm a great playmaker and can put up the numbers, too."